we should be right here with four days to go before the fiscal cliff strikes. >> all right. always a pleasure. thank you, sir. >> good to be with you. >>> major break today in negotiations between dock workers and port operators puts off at least for now a port strike that would have shut down nearly all shipping traffic along the east and gulf coast. a federal mediator says that the union and group representing the shipping lines agreed to a 30-day contract extension narrowly averting the sunday strike deadline. business groups warn that the economic impact of such a work stoppage is disaster. joining me is nbc's ron mott. for folks not following the story, how did we get here? >> reporter: folks haven't because they're paying attention to the fiscal cliff. this was lurking in the shadows and today moved the ball down the field for 30 days and may be talking about a strike again in 30 days but the big issue here was this so-called container royalty that the shipping companies pay to the union members who actually the guys and men and women offloading the big ships and the c